Staying in the house can quickly start to feel repetitive or mundane. When you find 50 productive things to do when you’re bored and at home and you’re purposeful with your time, you’ll be surprised at what you can accomplish!
This winter especially, we are much more home-based and with restrictions on where we can go and who we can see. Lockdown affects all of us in numerous and different ways and keeping busy is important for our mental health and wellbeing.
But what if I told you that there are lots of simple, productive things to do when you’re bored? You’ll start to feel motivated again, and you won’t have wasted hours of your life on staring at a wall.
You need to do things that are both fun and productive. As strange as they sound, fun and productivity do go together. You will find your rhythm and be able to make the most of your day and feel that you have accomplished things without even leaving the house!
Here we have compiled a list of 50 productive things to do when you’re bored.
1. Reading a book (Time to escape to a new fictional world).
2. Cleaning your house (Search home-décor on Pinterest for some cleaning motivation if you’re devoid of it)
3. Organising and decluttering. (It’s time to let go long preserved junk)
4. Deleting unnecessary data on your phones and laptop. (Do your gadgets a favor please!)
5. Trying out a new recipe. (Good food = good life) You might like these Nutella Twists that are super easy.
6. Calling a friend you haven’t talked to in years. (Remember, friends for life?)
7. Doing something crafty. (Time to go back to the school days) This post on DIY Crafts is a great starting point or if you are feeling festive then try these natural Christmas decorations.
8. Doing a Zumba workout at home. (And burn extra calories)
9. Pamper your skin with face packs. (Your skin too needs pampering) you could even have a home spa day.
10. Paint your nails. (Yeah, nails too)
11. Watching a knowledgeable movie. (Knowledge + movie is another great combination). I have a list of great films that teenagers should watch if you need some inspiration.
12. Go through your old photo albums. (Time to get nostalgic)
13. Plant a tree or make yourself a garden ( A while in nature is enough to bestow peace)
14. Re-model your place. (A change in bed position can transform the look) If you are feeling really brave then you could paint a geometric feature wall.
15. Transform your desk into a work station. (Your desk deserves better than unorganized piles of books)
16. Hot oil massage for your hair. (to combat pollution damage)
17. Learn a new skill. (The most productive)
18. Learn a few new words. (Try creating vocabulary flashcards every day)
19. Organise your accessories (Long overdue!)
20. Give your CV an update. (You might need it any day)
21. Clean your mail (They eat up a lot of storage)
22. Learn a new language (Google/apple translator if you’re okay with something unsystematic)
23. Write something, or even start a blog! (Give birth to the writer in you)
24. Set a budget. (Saving money is always smart)
25. Learn a new hairstyle (It’s never out of style). My girls always wanted me to lean how to french and dutch braid their hair!
26. Start a journal (Catharsis is all you need)
27. Learn a unique form of art. (My Recommendation – resin art)
28. Participate in some competitions. This was one of my favourite past times for a good few years. I entered many competitions using MSE or Loquax and I won so many prizes over the years after all it is a matter of Maths and the more you enter then the more chance of winning, its all about probability. (Who knows if you get lucky)
29. Learn a new tune (If you have a guitar and are a sucker for music)
30. Make some storage space. (Very necessary in the list)
31. Write a letter to your future self (Imagine finding a letter you wrote years ago)
32. Bury a treasure. (For the future generations or in case of an apocalypse). We have made a covid time capsule with key information in as I think it will be really interesting in the future. For example my daughter printed off her positive test result!
33. Start a collection. (It would matter in the end)
34. Get broken stuff repaired (long overdue!)
35. Unsubscribe from email lists. (You can find the option to unsubscribe at the bottom of the mail)
36. Clean your shoes. (Your shoes kept in the back of your closet are demanding your attention)
37. Organise paperwork (I bet, half of them would be bills and rough notes)
38. Donate your old clothes to a charity shop. (Don’t think twice when it comes to helping a needy) Some are closed at the moment but bag things up ready to go and drop them next time they are open.
39. Unfollow social media accounts. (That do nothing else than bugging you)
40. Clean your garage. (The most underrated place in your house)
41. Open the century-old cartons. (I bet you forgot about the things you kept)
42. Start a savings fund or sort out your pension. This post on Penfold Pensions for the self-employed is full of information and if you use my link then you will get £25 added to your pot. (Might make you a millionaire someday)
43. Plan a holiday (Must do) We might not be able to travel right now but soon we will again.
44. Create data backups (Computers and situations are never too reliable)
45. Solve maths puzzles. (Powers up the brain)
46. Learn a new sport (Stay fit) or do couch to 5K if you prefer solitary activities.
47. Make a memory scrapbook. (It will be worth it)
48. Read some articles
49. Visit a museum (Trip that comes packed with knowledge)
50. Create a to-do list. (If you follow a systematic approach in life)
I hope this list of 50 Productive Things To Do When You’re Bored changes your mind. If you have any more ideas, feel free to share them in the comment section. If you have a teenager you may want to look at this post 30+ Ideas for Keeping Teens Busy, Safe and Happy During Lockdown
